The Nathan Thurm Memorial Mendacity Medal

Nathan Thurm was a character played by Martin Short in a 1980s Saturday Night Live parody of 60 Minutes, a sleazy lawyer defending corporate criminals. Sweating profusely and chain-smoking, Thurm would respond to questions with a defensive “I knew that,” then make a ridiculous assertion and immediately deny he had said anything of the sort. In the fun-house world of today’s political discourse, where so many have invested so much time and energy into creating “revisionist history” – all the while accusing others of the very rhetorical crimes of which they themselves are guilty – we thought it apt to dedicate this award to Thurm.